For police officers, that use of force continuum is applicable, but as Mike said, it is not as useful for civilians.

That continuum is most applicable when affecting an arrest. Civilians rarely make arrests and as a result "soft techniques" are not useful (with the exception of pepper spray).

We as civilians should not be involved in a physical confrontation with another unless it was brought on by an aggressor in which case we should immediately skip level 3 and move to level 4 (which is where I would include pepper spray) or 5.